A landslide for Arafat

Palestine's first election draws overwhelming turnout

January 21, 1996
Web posted at: 12:40 a.m. EST (0540 GMT)

RAMALLAH, West Bank (CNN) -- As Palestinian election
officials emptied boxes brimming with ballots and began the
momentous process of counting, two facts emerged quickly and
clearly: Voters had turned out in phenomenal numbers, and
Yasser Arafat was racing toward a landslide victory.

With 60 percent of the ballots counted under the watchful
eyes of international observers, Arafat received 85 percent
of the votes in the historic and mostly peaceful exercise of
selecting a president for Palestine under self-rule.

Arafat's only opponent, 72-year-old social worker Samiha
Khalil, picked up 10 percent of the votes, the Palestinian
election commission said early Sunday.

A final tally was expected later in the day.

More than a million Palestinians were registered to vote in
the elections for a president and 88-seat legislative
council.

As red, white, black, and green Palestinian flags fluttered
in central squares in the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinians
thronged to the polling stations, eager to participate in
this defining moment in their long and hard-won battle for
self-rule.

Voter turnout was projected at 90 percent in the Gaza Strip
and 85 percent in the West Bank, according to the election
commission. After dusk, as the polling wound down,
Palestinian officials called the turnout highly satisfactory,
especially in Gaza.

People stand in queues to vote

For nearly 30 years, the orange identity card was a detested
symbol of Israeli occupation. Now Palestinians were using it
to gain a badge of pride -- their voter's slip.

Undeterred by the declaration of an election boycott by Hamas
and other militant groups that oppose the Middle East peace
process, long lines of voters remained even after the
official closing time.

The late-night rush was a repeat of what election observers
say was the major problem in Gaza -- too many people wanted
to vote.

Many Palestinians had waited all their lives for this day.
And it seemed that no one was willing to pass up the chance
to choose their first democratically elected leadership.

Arafat had his kaffiyeh headdress knocked askew as he made
his way Saturday through the crowd at a packed polling
station in Gaza City.

"This is the first legislative election for Palestinians, and
this is a foundation for a Palestinian state," Arafat said as
he voted at the Anas Ibn Malik high school.

While Arafat is predicted to be president of the Palestinian
Council, voters here say he must improve the economy and
expand employment opportunities to keep his job.

"That's the most important thing for Arafat to take care of,
or the next election might be a different one," said one man
after casting his ballot.

For some voters, exercising their franchise was a cathartic
exercise. "After what happened, I felt I needed to vote, to
raise my voice to bring an end to the occupation that still
exists," said one voter.

Tensions thwart turnout in some areas

In Hebron, the only West Bank city where Israeli troops
remain, a Jewish settler was stabbed Saturday. Israel
responded by closing down central Hebron, forcing voters to
get escorts from among international observers.

With 4,000 Israeli guards swarming East Jerusalem and Hebron,
a thick fog of tension hovered over the towns, causing fewer
Palestinians to make a beeline for the polling booths.
Occasional scuffles and arrests were reported. As of
mid-afternoon, only 30 percent of Jerusalem voters had gone
to the polls, so voting hours were extended by three hours.

"I don't think there is any doubt they are doing everything
they can to intimidate the voters," said former U.S.
President Jimmy Carter, head of a team of election observers.

In the West Bank town of Jenin, polling stations were
deserted as thousands attended the funerals of three Hamas
members who were killed by Israeli soldiers Friday after they
fired on an army roadblock. But election officials said
voting picked up later in the day after the Hamas activists
were given the honor of a military burial.

As polls closed, thousands of Israelis took to Jerusalem's
streets in protest of voting by Palestinians in the holy
city. Palestinians view East Jerusalem, home to some of the
most sacred Jewish and Muslim shrines, as the capital of a
future state. Some 50,000 were registered to vote there.

The peace process

The vote took place under terms of Israeli-PLO peace deals
launched in 1993, which began the process of handing over
parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip to Palestinian
self-rule.

Under Arafat's leadership, most Palestinian towns and cities
in the West Bank and Gaza gained autonomy over the past two
years, ending more than a quarter-century of Israeli
occupation.

Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres said the high turnout
showed that the vast majority of Palestinians supported the
peace agreements with Israel.